The Wall Street Journal

Recent college graduates, especially those in the liberal arts and political sciences, increasingly are turning to coding boot camps, online courses, and community colleges to give them more marketable skills. Unemployment among recent graduates remains above historical highs at about 5 percent, and 45 percent of them are in positions that do not require a degree. A 2013 study from Burning Glass Technologies found liberal-arts graduates doubled the number of job opportunities available to them when they had additional skills, such as marketing, data analysis, and computer programming. For many recent graduates, the skills they seek are programming skills. Coding boot camps, which can last from one to eight months and cost nothing to $20,000, are seeing an upswing in enrollment, nearly tripling from 2013 to 2014. Another avenue for developing basic coding skills are massive open online courses (MOOCs), many of which are free. Other recent graduates also are turning to community colleges where they can earn certifications in highly desirable skills. To read further, please visit http://online.wsj.com/articles/college-diplomas-with-a-side-of-specialized-study-1416589926.